Abstract
The current study investigated the efficacy of a brief 6-week Acceptance and Commitment Therapy (ACT) protocol as a group treatment for Spanish-speaking Latinx adults with depressive symptoms. Independent samples t-tests and paired samples t-tests were used to examine mean level changes of depression and well-being between and within the ACT and waitlist control groups from baseline (week 1) to post-treatment (week 6). Participants (N = 14; 86% female; M = 54 years old, SD = 3.82) completed self-report measures at week 1 and at week 6. The analyses found statistically significant reductions in change scores for depressive symptoms on the: PHQ-9 for the ACT group when compared to the control group; BDI-II for the ACT group at week 6 when compared to week 1; and PHQ-9 for the ACT group at week 6 when compared to week 1. Statistically significant elevations in change scores for well-being were only found on the MQLI for the ACT group at week 6 when compared to week 1. Due to increased levels of attrition in such a hard to access population, it is recommended that future researchers develop long-standing relationships with the Latinx communities they hope to study, in order to combat mental health stigma as accepted members of the collectivist community.